Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf
''Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf ''is an animated comedy television series created by D.A. Nichols and Abbey Thickson, which premiered on September 10, 2004 on The WB. After the series' second season, The WB merged with UPN to form The CW, and since September 22, 2006, the network had been the official broadcaster of the series in the United States. On March 14, 2012, The CW renewed Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf ''for a ninth season, which was later confirmed to be the final season, placing an order for 22 episodes. The show was the fifth longest running series on The CW, or the networks that came together to make it up, behind ''Jay: The Teenage Years, One Tree Hill, Smallville, Supernatural, and 7th Heaven. A total of 198 episodes aired over the course of its nine seasons. The series concluded on May 17, 2013. Plot Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf ''takes place in the fictional town of Arctic City. The series focuses on the adventures of William "Uberpuppy", an anthropomorphic teenage arctic wolf, along with his love interest, Addison, and his friends Lacey and Kason. Voice Cast '''Main' * Jason Marsden as William "Uberpuppy" * Emily Browning as Addison * Nicole Sullivan as Lacey * Tom Kenny as Kason * Pamela Adlon as Shelby * Corey Burton as Larry Recurring Coming soon! Guest Coming soon! Production Development In early 2002, following successful ratings of Kyla & Katrina on ABC, D.A. Nichols decided to create another animated series, this one set in a small town on the continent of Antarctica. Nichols conceived the idea for the show, drew the main characters, and wrote a pilot script. The WB was uncertain of the viability of Nichols's concept for an animated series set in Antarctica, so the network teamed up with producer Abbey Thickson, who had previously worked with Nichols on The Extremes. Thickson rewrote the pilot script and created several important characters who did not appear in Nichols's first draft, including Shelby and Larry. Thickson also reworked some of the supporting characters (whom the pair characterized as originally having been generic). While Nichols's writing tended to emphasize environmental humor, Thickson focused on character development to provide an emotional context for the series' numerous conflicts. Nichols was ultimately so pleased with Thickson's contributions, he chose to credit her as a co-creator, rather than give her the "developer" credit usually reserved for individuals brought onto a pilot written by someone else. Opening sequence The initial idea for the show's opening sequence was Nichols's. After asking 18 companies to come up with suggestions for how best to realize it, the producers finally hired Glendale-based Renegade Animation to provide the final version. According to Renegade's official website, the idea behind the sequence is to "explore the cold and playful spirit of wolves." The sequence depicts William's day routine in Arctic Town (waking up, brushing teeth, getting dressed, etc) and is joined by Addison, Lacey, and Kason. The music for the opening was composed by Mark Mothersbaugh, and has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. In 2006, it was included on the album Uberpuppy's Howls and Music: Music from and Inspired from the TV Show. When the series transitioned to high definition starting with the episode "Arctic City's Finest", the title sequence was redone using Toon Boom Harmony software. 2006 renewal During early 2006, following the announcement of the WB/UPN merger into The CW, the program's future was hanging in the balance and was entirely in the hands of the newly formed network whether to renew it for a third season. In April 2006, Jason Marsden, the voice of William "Uberpuppy", explained the possibility of returning for a third season. After further consideration, it was decided that Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf ''would be picked up for a third season, which would air as part of The CW's inaugural fall schedule. Originally renewed for 13 episodes, the renewal was extended to a full 22 on September 18, 2006. Facing cancellation Because it was scheduled to lead The CW's Friday-night lineup, portions of ''Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf ''were often pre-emptied by ''America's Next Top Model that ran into overtime; in season seven especially, whole episodes were pre-emptied. The sixth season episode "Arctic City's Finest", became the first episode of the series to be produced in widescreen high definition when it aired on January 8, 2010. Cancellation Although ratings remained consistent through the sixth through eighth seasons and had begun to rise in the Nielsen ratings, The CW abruptly announced in 2012 that Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf ''had been cancelled. The cancellation coincided with the announcement that Julie Plec, co-creator of The CW's other show, ''The Vampire Diaries, would be creating a spin-off of the said show called The Originals, which would eventually take over Uberpuppy's time slot. Hopes to keep the show afloat surfaced as sources indicated that Cartoon Network was interested in securing the rights to the show, but in January 2012, CN's then-president Stuart Snyder said he had "no plans to pick up the animated series." On April 20, 2013, it was announced that The CW ordered a two-part episode to give the show a proper finale. The network later released a statement that they would air a one-hour series finale on May 17, 2013. In a Cartoon Brew interview on March 19, 2014, D.A. Nichols said that no current plans exist to revive Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf, although he would not rule out the possibility of it returning. Potential revival On September 6, 2017, it was revealed that Nichols and Thickson had talked with CW executives about a potential revival. On April 16, 2018, in an interview with IGN, D.A. Nichols said he would want the revived series to include a new set of characters, who would appear along with William, Addison, Lacey, and Kason. Crossovers The Vampire Diaries In 2009, Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf creator D.A. Nichols contacted The Vampire Diaries co-creator Julie Plec about a crossover. At first, the idea seemed unlikely to receive approval; however, it resurfaced when Plec and Nichols were at the World Television Festival in Canada and they decided to get approval and run with it. When Plec was giving a talk, she accidentally mentioned the crossover, that same day Variety ''was already inquiring about the crossover episodes. Plec later stated: "We're all used to being in control and in charge of our own shows and even though this was a freelance-type situation ... there was a big expectation and also a desire on all of our parts to really have a nice collaboration. You have to give just a little. It was sort of like a life lesson there, I think." "The biggest challenge for us was doing a comedy with supernatural drama in it. Generally, our episode stories are a little lighter," stated Nichols in an interview. "Would our audience go with vampires in it? There was a moment where it could've gone any way. I think the results were amazing. It turned out to be a very funny episode." The ''Uberpuppy the Arctic Wolf ''episode "The Uberpuppy Diaries" was the first crossover to air, on May 7, 2010, written by ''The Vampire Diaries writers Kevin Williamson, Julie Plec, Elizabeth Craft, and Sarah Fain.Category:Television series